Union Human Resource Minister Prakash Javadekar and Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur laid foundation stone of campus of Central University of Himachal Pradesh at Jadrangal, near Dharamshala in Kangra district today. Earlier in the day Foundation Stone of the second Campus was also laid at Dehra.

Speaking on the occasion, Union Human Resource Minister Prakash Javadekar said that education was the pre requisite for building a strong and vibrant nation. He said that the Centre Government was ensuring that every school have a library. He said that the Union Government would provide all possible help to the three thousand schools of the State where pre primary classes has been started by the State government. He said that the Union Government would also provide all possible help to ensure that the University Campus would be completed soon.

Shri Javadekar said that the Centre Government would give befitting reply to the Pakistan who was sponsors of terrorist activities in the valley. He said that the Centre Government has scraped the Most Favoured Nation Status from Pakistan. He said that the Centre Government has taken back the security provided to the Hurriyat leaders of Kashmir. He said that several steps have been taken to check terror funding. He said that many terrorist were killed in the valley by the Army. He said that the Prime Minister has given free hand to the Army to check terrorism activities in the State.

While addressing the gathering on the occasion, Chief Minister said that the Central University will have two campuses at two different locations and would have a massive campus spread in an area of over 1000 hectare. He said that both these campus would not only provide quality education to the youth of the region, but also ensure economic activities in the area. He said that the University became functional in the year 2010, but it took about nine years that the University would get its campuses at two places. He said that in coming times the University would have fourteen schools of studies with nearly seventy Department of Studies and about forty Centres of Studies as per the Ministry of Human Resource Development/UGC.

Jai Ram Thakur said that the State government was laying special stress on qualitative improvement in the field of education. He said that over Rs. 1300 crore would be spent on construction of both these campus and it would emerge a major hub of higher education in the area. He said that the State government would also ensure that the both these campuses were completed within next about three years.

The Chief Minister said that the nation was poised to emerge as a world power under the able and dynamic leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. He said that terrorist attack on army convoy in Pulwama recently was a cowardly act by terrorists backed by Pakistan and the nation would give befitting reply to these extremists and their patrons. He said that nation was rock solid behind the Prime Minister and would back whatever decision he takes.

Food and Civil Supplies Minister Kishan Kapoor welcomed the Union Minister, Chief Minister and other dignitaries to his home constituency and detailed various developmental demands of the area.

Member of Parliament Kangra Parliamentary constituency and former Chief Minister Shanta Kumar said that it was after the long wait that this premier University campuses would come into existence. He said that although there had been expansion in the field of education, but standard of education still need to be improved.

Education Minister Suresh Bhardwaj said that the Central University would surely emerge as the premier Institution of Higher Education in the region. He said that the present State government headed by the Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur was giving special thrust on education due to which the State has emerged as the Education Hub of the Country.

Vice Chancellor Dr. Kuldeep Chand Agnihotri said that it was a historic day for the people of the State as the Central University would be coming up at two centres at Dharamshala and Dehra in Kangra district. He said that it would go a long way in providing quality education not only to the youth of the State but also of the region.

Two minute silence was also observed on the occasion as a mark of respect to Martyr Tilak Raj, who was killed at Pulwama in a terrorist attack recently.